Lot 201: A Jain Aḍhāī-dvīpa Cosmic Diagram on Cloth, India,...
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A Jain Aḍhāī-dvīpa Cosmic Diagram on Cloth, India, Circa 1830
A rare and vibrant Jain cosmological textile painting depicting the Aḍhāī-dvīpa (Two-and-a-half continents), dated circa 1830, India. Executed in polychrome water-based pigments on cotton, this large cloth panel presents a mandala-like cosmic map central to Jain cosmology and ritual visualisation.
At the core of the composition lies Mount Meru, encircled by concentric lands and oceans rendered in brilliant orange, blue, and green, symbolising realms of existence. The outer rings show temple clusters, celestial palaces, and deity guardians, while stylised mountains and cosmic elements like crescent moons and floral patterns fill the peripheral space.
This diagram is both a didactic map and a sacred tool for meditation, conveying the Jain vision of the universe, moral order, and rebirth. Such works were typically commissioned by patrons or temples and displayed during rituals or festivals. Comparable to thangka paintings in intent, it serves as an object of spiritual contemplation in the Jain tradition.
Approximately 130 x 127cm
Comparable historic examples—such as the Mandala of Jñānadākinī (late 14th century, Tibet)—are held in major international collections including The Metropolitan Museum of Art. One such thangka was acquired from the London-based Dale Crawford Gallery Ltd. and subsequently purchased in 1987 through the Lita Annenberg Hazen Trust.
That piece has since featured prominently in several landmark exhibitions on Himalayan art and Buddhist visual culture, including Mandala: The Architecture of Enlightenment at Asia Society (1997), Sacred Visions: Early Paintings from Central Tibet (1998–1999), and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art (2003–2004).
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